📝 Notes

Jeff Yutzler first presented the information in the presentation. This was followed by discussion among the participants. Some key points from that discussion:

• GeoPackage fits between GeoJSON, which is very lightweight and text based, and a full-blown spatial database system.

• GeoPackage is broadly implemented - there are 10-15 vendors listed on the GeoPackage.org site.

• GeoPackage is meant to be lightweight enough for mobile applications. It's possible to package changes to a previous file into a new file and apply those changes to the device, but actual synchronization is not a current feature of the spec or of any extensions, but it could be possible in the future.

• GeoPackage uses the WKB (Well Known Binary) representation for vector data. This comes from the OGC Simple Features specification.

• The GDAL package can translate both ways for Shapefile <-> GeoPackage.

• There is an online GeoPackage to Shapefile converter

• File management becomes easier with GeoPackage vs. Shapefiles since everything is contained in a single file

• For PO.DAAC, it should be possible to distribute SWOT data in both Shapefile and GeoPackage formats

• There are many known limitations for Shapefiles. One source is the "Shapefile Challenge" web page.

• Shapefiles can only contain one geometry type per file.

• GeoPackage can currently handle integer data for images (JPG and PNG). An extension to handle floating point is in the works. A Tile Gridded Coverage extension that used 256x256 TIFF files is being considered. A public comment period should be starting in August.

• There are practical limits to the amount of data that can be put into a GeoPackage file. However, hydrology for the Mississippi river would fit very comfortably

• When thinking about limits to GeoPackage, realize that most of those limits (and more) apply to Shapefiles.